Awards

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

A sharp, funny, and heartfelt memoir about fatherhood and the ups and downs of raising a family in modern America

No one writes about family quite like Drew Magary. In Someone Could Get Hurt, he reflects on his own parenting experiences to explore the anxiety, rationalizations, compromises, and overpowering love that come with raising children.

In brutally honest and funny stories, Magary reveals how American mothers and fathers cope with being in over their heads—from getting drunk while trick-or-treating and telling dirty jokes to make bath time go smoothly to committing petty vandalism to bond with a five-year-old.

Someone Could Get Hurt offers a hilarious and heartfelt look at child rearing with a glimpse into the genuine love and compassion that accompany the missteps and flawed logic. Its the story of head lice, almost-dirty words, flat head syndrome, and a man trying to commit the ultimate act of selflessness in a selfish world.

Review:

"The 'postmortals' of the title of this debut novel, set in the near future, have voluntarily undertaken 'the cure,' a form of gene therapy that bestows eternal youth although not immortality: recipients can still die of disease or be killed. But as narrator John Farrell explains, taking the cure is a way of sitting 'in immortality's waiting room.' An odd mixture of satire and dystopian fantasy, this thoughtful novel cleverly explores the consequences of having a long-term lease on life, from the mundane (a woman realizes 'I'm always gonna get my period') to the profound (the world's resources exhausted by an ever-growing population) through a series of short, date-stamped blog posts found in 2090 and considered 'one of the definitive personal records of life in the former United States' during the 60 years after the cure was discovered. The premise is fascinating, and Magary, a comic sports blogger and satirist (Men with Balls), has an eye for the odd, surprising detail that makes science fiction credible. The plot, though, is little more than an extended exploration of the ramifications of the cure, none of them pleasant. While there's a certain pleasure in watching this brave new world unfold on the page, the narrator's passivity becomes tiresome, and the dry, ironic tone is at odds with the dark vision of a future gone amok. (Aug. 30)" Publishers Weekly Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Review:

"As someone who is totally freaked out by the thought of dying, The Postmortal really stood on top of me and peed on my face. It's depiction of the future isn't filled with crappy robots fighting Will Smith. It's filled with eerily realistic portrayals of what the future could look like and does it all in an incredibly entertaining story." Justin Halpern, author of Sh*t My Dad Says

Review:

"Magary has created a smartly realized vision of a planet that's hit the skids....Magary is blogger for the sports sites Deadspin and Kissing Suzy Kolber, and the blog format serves him well in the early sections of the novel: It allows him to integrate newspaper articles that set the scene, and he gives [narrator John Farrell] an engaging, quick-witted voice." Kirkus Reviews

Synopsis:

What side do you choose when you dont even know what War youre fighting?

Over generations, the War has grown. It has become bloodier. Both sides will do anything to win. But with the involvement of a third faction—one that wants to put an end to the violence finally—even more enemies lurk around every corner.

Strangers have been watching Christopher for his entire life. He doesnt know why, but he knows that he has paranoia in his blood. He has prepared since he was young for the day that they would stop watching and come for him. On his eighteenth birthday, Christopher is attacked. Though he escapes with his life, he finds himself thrust into a War he never knew existed.

To the people of the War, Christopher is a legend, the hero or the villain who may one day bring an end to the conflict. But Christopher knows only that he isnt willing to become anyones pawn....

Synopsis:

John Farrell is about to get "The Cure."

Old age can never kill him now.

The only problem is, everything else still can . . .

Imagine a near future where a cure for aging is discovered and-after much political and moral debate-made available to people worldwide. Immortality, however, comes with its own unique problems-including evil green people, government euthanasia programs, a disturbing new religious cult, and other horrors. Witty, eerie, and full of humanity, The Postmortal is an unforgettable thriller that envisions a pre-apocalyptic world so real that it is completely terrifying.

About the Author

Drew Magary is a writer for Deadspin, NBC, Maxim, and Kissing Suzy Kolber. He's also written for GQ, New York Magazine, Rolling Stone, ESPN, Yahoo!, Comedy Central, Playboy, Penthouse, and various other media outlets. His first book, Men with Balls, was released in 2008. This is his first novel. He lives in Maryland with his wife and children.

What Our Readers Are Saying

Average customer rating based on 2 comments:

ringo6672, August 23, 2012 (view all comments by ringo6672)
I thought it was a great book. Made you think about whether you want immortality of age, and how society would react to it. It was fantastic from beginning to the perfect ending.

Tea, January 19, 2012 (view all comments by Tea)
This is one of the best Books I have read in a good while. It is a great representation of what might happen if at one point in our existence we (as Humans) develop a drug for eternal life and the flaws and hardships that would follow.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No(1 of 1 readers found this comment helpful)

"Publishers Weekly Review"
by Publishers Weekly,
"The 'postmortals' of the title of this debut novel, set in the near future, have voluntarily undertaken 'the cure,' a form of gene therapy that bestows eternal youth although not immortality: recipients can still die of disease or be killed. But as narrator John Farrell explains, taking the cure is a way of sitting 'in immortality's waiting room.' An odd mixture of satire and dystopian fantasy, this thoughtful novel cleverly explores the consequences of having a long-term lease on life, from the mundane (a woman realizes 'I'm always gonna get my period') to the profound (the world's resources exhausted by an ever-growing population) through a series of short, date-stamped blog posts found in 2090 and considered 'one of the definitive personal records of life in the former United States' during the 60 years after the cure was discovered. The premise is fascinating, and Magary, a comic sports blogger and satirist (Men with Balls), has an eye for the odd, surprising detail that makes science fiction credible. The plot, though, is little more than an extended exploration of the ramifications of the cure, none of them pleasant. While there's a certain pleasure in watching this brave new world unfold on the page, the narrator's passivity becomes tiresome, and the dry, ironic tone is at odds with the dark vision of a future gone amok. (Aug. 30)" Publishers Weekly Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

"Review"
by Justin Halpern, author of Sh*t My Dad Says,
"As someone who is totally freaked out by the thought of dying, The Postmortal really stood on top of me and peed on my face. It's depiction of the future isn't filled with crappy robots fighting Will Smith. It's filled with eerily realistic portrayals of what the future could look like and does it all in an incredibly entertaining story."

"Review"
by Kirkus Reviews,
"Magary has created a smartly realized vision of a planet that's hit the skids....Magary is blogger for the sports sites Deadspin and Kissing Suzy Kolber, and the blog format serves him well in the early sections of the novel: It allows him to integrate newspaper articles that set the scene, and he gives [narrator John Farrell] an engaging, quick-witted voice."

"Synopsis"
by Penguin,

What side do you choose when you dont even know what War youre fighting?

Over generations, the War has grown. It has become bloodier. Both sides will do anything to win. But with the involvement of a third faction—one that wants to put an end to the violence finally—even more enemies lurk around every corner.

Strangers have been watching Christopher for his entire life. He doesnt know why, but he knows that he has paranoia in his blood. He has prepared since he was young for the day that they would stop watching and come for him. On his eighteenth birthday, Christopher is attacked. Though he escapes with his life, he finds himself thrust into a War he never knew existed.

To the people of the War, Christopher is a legend, the hero or the villain who may one day bring an end to the conflict. But Christopher knows only that he isnt willing to become anyones pawn....

"Synopsis"
by Firebrand,

John Farrell is about to get "The Cure."

Old age can never kill him now.

The only problem is, everything else still can . . .

Imagine a near future where a cure for aging is discovered and-after much political and moral debate-made available to people worldwide. Immortality, however, comes with its own unique problems-including evil green people, government euthanasia programs, a disturbing new religious cult, and other horrors. Witty, eerie, and full of humanity, The Postmortal is an unforgettable thriller that envisions a pre-apocalyptic world so real that it is completely terrifying.

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